What’s the key to winning the AFC Championship this Sunday? Some say it will be the team with the better passing game, while others might say the team with the best defense.  But the key to winning the AFC Championship could very well come down to which team has the best rushing game.

With the Jets and Steelers having plenty of game changing players in the secondary, running could very well be the key to winning even though the Steelers and Jets finished first and third, respectively, in rush defense. In their last regular season match up, the Jets ran for 106 yards and the Steelers 146.

The rushing game is key to winning the AFC Championship because the team that successfully runs the ball can control the play clock, setup the play action pass, and minimize turnovers.

Here are some facts about the Jets and Steelers:

Averages Per Game

Jets offensive average: 351 total yards, 202 yards passing and 148 yards rushing per game
Steelers offensive average: 345 total yards, 225 yards passing, 120 yards rushing per game

Jets defense average: 291 total yards, 200 passing and 91 rushing
Steelers defense ave: 276 total yards, 214 passing and 62 rushing

Post Season Trends

The Jets are 2-0 against the spread (ATS), 2-0 ATS away, 2-0 ATS as the underdog and 2-0 as an away underdog.
The Steelers are 1-0 against the spread (ATS), 1-0 ATS at home, 1-0 ATS as the favorite and 1-0 as a home favorite.

Jets and Steelers Regular Season

Matchup	JETS	STEELERS
Wins-Losses	11-5	12-4
Avg Points	22.9	23.4
Avg Points Allowed	19.0	14.5
Home Record	5-3	5-3
Road Record	6-2	7-1
Division Record	4-2	5-1
Conference Record	9-3	9-3

Look for both the Jets and Steelers to dominate the play clock with a game plan that emphasizes the running game.

source: espn.com

Jets coach Rex Ryan says Mark Sanchez may not play Sunday due to a sore shoulder.  Earlier in the week, Sanchez was said to have a 98% chance of playing, but after Thursday’s practice, Ryan reduced his chance to just 80%. He said it may even come down to a game-time decision.

“I think I underestimated where he was with that injury,” Ryan said. “This one could be more of a game-time type decision than I thought it would be.”

During Thursday morning’s practice, Ryan and the Jets coaching staff noticed that Sanchez didn’t look comfortable. Although he did make some passes, none had any power behind them.

It is believed that Sanchez is suffering from a cartilage tear in his shoulder; Ryan describes it as a “sore shoulder”.

Regardless of the description, the Jets will be forced to give their QB backups, Mark Brunell and Kellen Clemens, more reps in practice and draw up some game-plan options. If Sanchez cannot start, long time veteran Mark Brunell is expected to get the start.

“Everyone knows the situation, we’re close to potentially getting in the playoffs,” Brunell said. “You think about that game, and in that game you think about one play at a time.”

What would be the ramifications of Sanchez not starting? Well, for one, Mark Brunell is left-handed. This fact alone could significantly affect the Jets passing game. Secondly, when the Jets did throw, you would expect the throw to the other side. Thirdly, you would expect the Jets to focus more on the running game. Lastly, the Jets would lose mobility at the quarterback position.

No one really knows if Sanchez will play in the NFL this week, but it’s obvious Ryan and the Jets are being cautious with their starting QB. Don’t be surprised in the Jets sit Sanchez.

The New York Jets hope of taking over sole possession in the AFC East were crashed after their devastating loss the New England Patriots (45-3) Monday night in Foxboro.

You could almost hear Dandy Don Meredith singing “Turn out the lights …”, after the Patriots took a 17-0 first quarter lead. By half time it was 24-3.

But this is NFL football, and most of us expected to see the Jets come out of the locker room, hell-bent on kicking Patriot butt – but who would have “thunk” it. The Jets never got over their shell-shock from the first half!

While Tom Brady and the Patriot offense added 21 more points, the Patriot defense, ranked 31st in the NFL, shutout (and shut up) the Jets in the second half. The final score 45-3.

Why did the Jets lose so badly? Are the Patriots that good? Is the Jets Bark bigger than it’s Bite?

The answer is both, plus another factor – Tom Brady! Here are some tidbits to back it up:

• With Tom Brady at QB, the New England Patriots have won last 25 consecutive games at home.
• Brady hasn’t thrown an interception in his last 228 passes.
• Brady has thrown at least one TD pass in all 12 of the Patriots games in 2010.
• Brady followed up a 4 touchdown, perfect 158.3 QB rating against Detroit last week with a 4 TD passes and 148.9 QB rating against the Jets.
• 8 different receivers caught Brady passes against the Jets.
• An ex-Jet, Danny Woodhead, had 4 receptions for 104 yards. Wes Welker had 7 catches for 80 yards and 1 TD. Deion Branch, Aaron Hernandez and Brandon Tate were each on the receiving end of a Brady TD pass.
• Brady is the NFL MVP
• The Patriots have the #1 ranked offense in the NFL.
• The Jets allow an average of 19 points per game – 6th worse in the NFL.
• The Jets score on average 22 points per game – 14th in the NFL.
• The Jets average 356 yards per game – 12th in the NFL.
• The Patriots have beaten Baltimore, San Diego, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh and the Jets.
• The Jets record of 9-3 comes against teams with a combined record of just 39-68, with only one of those teams being over .500 (the Patriots in Week 2, who were 1-0).

The Jets can take one consolation from the game; it only counts as one loss. If they can come to terms with this loss and play better football, they may still have a chance to snatch first place in the AFC East division title from the the Patriots. But it won’t be easy and they’ll need some help!

The Jets play the Miami Dolphins (6-6) at home, travel to take on the Steelers (9-3) and the Bears (9-3), and return home for the season finale against the Bills (2-10).

The rest of the Patriots schedule is away at Chicago (9-3), home at Green Bay (8-4), away in Buffalo (2-10). They finish at home against the Dolphins (6-6).

But one question remains:  Will the Jets get out of their seats after their near-fatal crash in Foxboro?

We’ll have to wait a week!

Sources: new york daily news, sportsillustrated.com